Integrated circuits are typically manufactured in quantity and supplied for one or more industrial applications. However, when multiple integrated circuits of a particular design are manufactured, variations in the manufacturing conditions often result in performance differences among the individual integrated circuits. For example, one integrated circuit may be able to perform at a higher clock speed than another integrated circuit. The integrated circuits may also generate different amounts of excess heat and consume different amounts of power during operation despite receiving substantially the same input signals and operating in substantially the same environmental conditions.
In order to efficiently ensure that an integrated circuit from a group will operate within a window of operating parameters of an application, the application may be designed for the worst-case scenario of the integrated circuit for each operating parameter. For example, the application may assume that the integrated circuit has the lowest speed within the range of expected speeds resulting from variations in the manufacturing conditions. Separately, the application may also assume that the integrated circuit generates the greatest amount of excess heat that could result from variations in the manufacturing conditions.
These variations among the integrated circuits may require certain precautions to be taken for the benefit of a relatively small number of integrated circuits in the group. For example, the application may be designed to operate at a sufficiently low speed so that an acceptably high yield of manufactured circuits can be expected to function at that speed. Furthermore, the integrated circuits may be housed in packages with higher capacity to dissipate excess heat in order to avoid possible overheating. However, packages having a higher heat dissipation capacity tend to cost more than their less robust counterparts. Variations in the manufacturing conditions of the integrated circuits can therefore have a negative impact on the application that uses the integrated circuit, such as in terms of speed, cost, reliability, and power consumption.